


More than a Brother

by emfelicity



Category: Spring Awakening - Sheik/Sater
Genre: F/F, M/M, but i'll add their name tags when they show up, homophobia tw, oh and the other sa characters will make appearances later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-24
Updated: 2015-11-25
Packaged: 2018-04-27 23:16:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5068675
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emfelicity/pseuds/emfelicity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Listen, Ernst. It’s not even for half a week. My parents are only in town for three days and then everything will go back completely to normal. I promise."</p><p>The opposite of a fake dating au, basically.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Listen, Ernst. It’s not even for half a week. My parents are only in town for three days and then everything will go back completely to normal. I promise,” Wendla begs.

“Why don’t you just ask Hanschen?” 

“Even I’m not that good of an actor. You know I love him, but I could never pull off something that outrageous.” Wendla takes a moment to grimace at the thought, and then continues. “Please, Ernst. I really need this. If my parents find out about Ilse and I they’ll disown me, and I really need them to pay my tuition. Not all of us are smart enough to go to NYU on full scholarship like you.” 

“It was a half scholarship for art that I almost lost because I’m not smart at all,” Ernst replies, but he’s blushing anyway.

“Please?” Wendla asks, putting on her best puppy dog face.

Ernst knows he'll regret this later, but he finally concedes. "Fine,” he says. “But you have to tell Hanschen.”

Wendla’s sigh of relief is audible. “Oh my god, thank you. Deal.” 

“When do your parents get here?”

Wendla tries to smile reassuringly before she even says anything. “Tonight.” 

Ernst looks like he’s about three seconds from panicking, so Wendla hurries on.

“But you don’t have to meet them tonight! They’ll be exhausted from flying. We’ll do lunch tomorrow, okay? It’ll be fine. They’ll love you. Hey, I have to go to class, but I’ll talk to Hanschen. I love you!” 

Wendla gives him a quick hug before running off, leaving Ernst to close his eyes and try to remember how to breathe.

*****************

Hanschen is sitting in class when his phone buzzes. And then it buzzes again. And again. In total, it buzzes six times before his curiosity gets the best of him and he pulls it out to see who the hell could need to talk to him this badly.

From Wendla: Hey Hanschen, there’s something I need to talk to you about.  
From Wendla: God, that sounded terrifying. I’m not pregnant.  
From Wendla: I’m not dying either. Really, it’s nothing bad.  
From Wendla: Can I call you?  
From Wendla: Hanschen??  
From Wendla: Oh wait, you’re probably in class. Call me when you’re done?  


With three minutes left in class, Hanschen decides he can miss whatever his professor is droning on about. He grabs his backpack and slides out the door, calling Wendla as soon as he steps into the hallway.

Wendla picks up before the first ring is over. “Hanschen, thank god. How are you?” 

“Uh, fine. Is there a reason you texted me six times in less than two minutes?”

“Oh right, yeah! Um. So.” Wendla pauses to prepare for Hanschen’s inevitable freak out. “I need Ernst to pretend to be my boyfriend for a couple days.” 

Hanschen’s “WHAT” in reply turns every head in the hallway, so he decides to walk outside.

“Why would you need Ernst to be your boyfriend? Ernst is my boyfriend.” 

Wendla grins at the protectiveness, and then starts to explain. “My parents are coming into town, and they can’t find out about Ilse, but I accidentally told them I’m dating someone.”

“Why couldn’t you ask, oh, I don’t know, anyone else in the entire fucking world?”

“Because I need it to be someone my parents will actually like, Hanschen. You know that rules out Melchior, and –“

“What about me?” Hanschen bites, indignant.

“I’m sure they’d love you, Hanschen. But you’re my best friend and you know we’d start cracking up the moment you had to put your arm around my shoulder.”

Hanschen silently agrees, but he’s not going to tell her that. “But Ernst is like, the gayest person I know. He started crying the first time he saw straight porn, Wendla.”

“I know, but it’ll be fine. So, do I have your permission?”

“I guess. Whatever.”

“Hanschen, you don’t have to be jealous. Like you said, Ernst is 200% gay. Plus, you two have been dating since high school. He loves you. He’s just doing me a favor, okay?”

“I’m not jealous,” Hanschen snaps, but he knows he’s lying even as he says the words. He knows Wendla knows that he’s lying too, but he’s never been one to give her the satisfaction of being right.

“Whatever you say,” Wendla replies. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Hanschen says begrudgingly, and then hangs up the phone.

*****************

Ernst wouldn’t say that he’s the kind of person who paces in the living room, but then again, Hanschen wouldn’t say that he’s dramatic, and they both know that’s a lie. Biting his nails as he walks back and forth, Ernst considers just texting to ask Hanschen if Wendla talked to him, but decides to hope for the best instead. Plus, if worst comes to worst, it’d be better to tell Hanschen in person where he can at least try to distract him with kisses.

The moment Hanschen walks in the door, Ernst jumps up off the couch and drapes himself over Hanschen, kissing him on the cheek, and then on the lips. Hanschen, however, is having none of it. So Wendla did talk to him. He pushes Ernst off and tries to walk away, but Ernst grabs his hand and offers him a smile. 

“So, how was your day?” Ernst asks probingly.

“Fine.” 

“Anything you want to, uh, talk about?” 

Hanschen just glares, and then walks to the kitchen. He’s grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge when Ernst wraps his arms around Hanschen’s stomach from behind and rests his head on his shoulder.

“She’s just a friend. I promise.”

“I know that.”

“I know. I’m just reminding you that you’re the person I love the most, Hansi.”

Ernst’s lips start to drag up Hanschen’s neck, and he barely remembers to close the refrigerator before turning around and putting his hands on Ernst’s hips, letting Ernst take charge for a bit.

Ernst leads Hanschen onto the counter, getting completely wrapped up in the pressure of Hanschen’s body against his own. He doesn’t even notice his phone buzzing in his pocket the first time he gets a phone call, or the second.

Both men’s shirts are on the floor and Hanschen’s lips are doing something clever on Ernst’s chest when the doorbell rings. Hanschen continues, but when it rings again, Ernst pushes him off, looking apologetic as he throws on his shirt. 

“Just one second!” Ernst calls out. His hair still mussed up and his shirt bunched up on one side, he hurries to the door and turns the doorknob. 

Ernst tries not to panic. Standing right outside his apartment is Wendla, with a man and a woman standing on either side of her. 

“Hi, Ernst!” Wendla steps forward and gives him a peck on the cheek and then whispers “I’m sorry” in his ear. Ernst’s eyes are still wide open in shock, so Wendla keeps going. “These are my parents, Thomas and Petra.” 

Ernst finally shakes out of his stupor and reaches out to shake hands with both of them, putting on a warm smile. “It’s so nice to finally meet you!” 

“There’s no need to be so formal, Ernst!” Petra says, reaching up for a hug. “We were so excited to meet you, we had to come right over!”

Tired of being ignored with a hard on, Hanschen whines from the kitchen. “Ernst, who’s interrupting us?”

“Sorry about that, that’s just Hanschen,” Ernst tells Wendla’s parents. “It’s Wendla!” he yells back to Hanschen. At a pointed look from Wendla, he adds, “my girlfriend!”

“Sorry,” Thomas asks, “who was that? Were we interrupting something?”

“Oh, no! That’s just Hanschen, my b–“ Ernst barely stops himself from the automatic response, and immediately tries to cover. “Brother,” he finishes, already regretting his inability to control his mouth.

Wendla’s jaw falls open. Knowing that he and Hanschen look nothing alike, Ernst tries to cover further. “He’s my adopted brother. We came to NYU together.” 

Wendla finally catches up. “Yeah, he’s actually the one that introduced Ernst and I to each other,” she says with a sickeningly sweet smile. That much is true, at least. 

“And you weren’t going to introduce your father and I to him? This man is responsible for you meeting the love of your life! We want to meet him!”

“But we don’t want to interrupt further, honey,” Thomas says. 

“Then bring him to lunch tomorrow! We’d love to get to know your family, too, Ernst.” 

Wendla tries to stop the metaphorical train from crashing by shaking her head, but Ernst has already started nodding. “Of course!” he replies, regret gripping his chest for at least the seventh time today. “It’ll be great!”

Wendla decides to cut off this conversation before it can get any worse. “Well, we really should go. I can’t wait for tomorrow, Ernst!” She gives him a goodbye hug and pulls the door shut as quickly as she can, dragging her parents to their car.

Ernst walks slowly toward the kitchen, trying to find a way to tell Hanschen what he just got them into. “So,” he says to Hanschen. “Are you busy around lunchtime tomorrow?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's in the tags, but I'm putting a strong trigger warning for homophobia in this chapter. It's been established that Wendla's parents are not lgbtq+ friendly, but it's very clear in this chapter. Just so you know! Other than that, I hope you like it! :)

Ernst feels a bit concerned when Hanschen heads out the door fifteen minutes before they’re supposed to leave for lunch with Wendla’s parents, claiming to be “dropping by the store.” But he passes it off as Hanschen being nervous, and lets him leave with a kiss and a promise to see him at the restaurant.

In retrospect, Ernst should’ve known something more was up. He and Wendla are sitting nervously at the table, waiting for the rest of the group to show up, when Hanschen finally strolls in. With Ilse.

Wendla stands up, not expecting to see her girlfriend at _this_ restaurant _right_ now. Ilse stalls as she sees Wendla and Ernst across the room, taking only a moment to figure out what Hanschen has done. Her arm throws out in front of Hanschen’s chest to stop him from moving as she turns to face him, already fuming. 

“You have got to be kidding me, Hanschen. I know you can be a jealous bitch but honestly–” 

Wendla storms over and interrupts Ilse’s speech with a fierce gaze of her own. “I cannot believe you brought Ilse. Hanschen, this is low. Even for you.” A third set of angry eyes stare him down next, Ernst having walked over to give his own boyfriend the glare of a lifetime. 

“If you had wanted a friend to come with, I would have come with you. But telling me you want to take me to lunch and then using me to make Ernst jealous, seriously?”

“And you know my parents can’t find out about me and Ilse, but you’d risk that because I hurt your pride? God, please just go. And don’t you dare use my girlfriend like that ever – Mom! Dad!”

Wendla schools her face into a smile, hoping her parents didn’t hear any of that conversation.

“Hi, honey! And Ernst, it’s wonderful to see you again!” Petra looks over to Hanschen, placing him immediately. “You must be Hanschen! Oh, I’m so glad! You brought a date! What’s your name, dear?” 

Hanschen has the decency to look a little guilty, but still introduces his “date.” “This is Ilse.” He puts out his hand to shake with Petra and then Thomas. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Petra seems to think for a moment, and then her eyes light up in recognition. “Ilse! You must be Wendla’s roommate! It’s so nice to finally meet you. We’ve heard more about you than Wendla’s boyfriend!” she laughs. “You seem so close with my daughter. I’m so glad you two are friends!”

Ilse looks vaguely horrified, but she reaches out to shake hands with Wendla’s parents anyway.  
She waits until Petra’s attention goes back to Wendla to glare at Hanschen, and then follows the group to their table. All six people sit down, fumbling as the faux couples remember to sit by who they’re supposed to. Wendla makes a point to sit as far as possible from Hanschen, where she can stare him down from across the table.

An awkward silence spreads across the table, the tension in the air nearly palpable. Thomas clears his throat, but doesn’t say anything. Finally, Petra begins asking questions.

“So, Ernst! I’d love to hear how you two met. Wendla has been so quiet about everything!”

Ernst’s hands immediately start shaking under the table, and Hanschen has to resist the urge to reach over and hold them between his until Ernst feels better. Wendla reaches for them instead, and a little “aw” sound comes from Petra. Hanschen clenches his fists and closes his eyes for a moment, and Ilse rolls her eyes.

Remembering his freshman acting course, Ernst puts on a smile. “Wendla and Hanschen had freshman, oh, what class was it? Math, right?” Ernst looks to Wendla for confirmation.

Hanschen answers anyway, “Yeah, math!” Ilse slams her foot on his under the table, promptly shutting him up, and Ernst gives him another glare for good measure.

Ernst continues. “So yeah, Hanschen really felt like, uh, Wendla and I would make a good pair. So she – I mean he – brought me to her – I mean his – apartment one night for a game night thing. And he was right, we really worked out.” Ernst finishes with more sweat on his hands than he started with, but Wendla just squeezes them tighter, serving the duel purpose of comforting Ernst and appeasing her parents.

Petra continues. “And what do you do at school, Ernst? What’s your major?”

“Art! I mean, art education. I want to teach art to kids.”

“Well, isn’t that adorable?” She looks over to her husband and he nods. “I’ve always worried about Wendla being in that musical theatre major, you know, being around all of those…” Petra whispers the next word, as if she’s scared of someone hearing her say it. “Homosexuals. But I’m sure that’s not a problem in art!”

Ilse has to cover her mouth with her hand to hide her jaw hanging open, and Hanschen dissolves into a coughing fit to cover up his gasp. Ernst looks like he might cry, and Wendla just looks mortified. They’re saved, however, by the waiter finally arriving to take their order.

By the time the waiter has gone through all of their orders, Wendla is hoping that everyone’s calmed down enough that no one is going to start a fist fight with her parents at the restaurant, even though Ilse’s fists haven’t quite unclenched. 

Petra starts in with the questions again. “What made you want to pursue art, Ernst?”

“Oh! Um, I guess I’ve just always been kind of good at it?”

Hanschen looks indignant. “Kind of good? Ernst, you can’t be serious.” Hanschen looks to Wendla’s parents, unable to shy away from bragging about his boyfriend.

“Ernst got into NYU on scholarship for art. He was actually featured in the NYU campus newspaper for a series of work he did on the gay – excuse me, the grey areas of uh, college ethics.”

“Isn’t that impressive?” Wendla asks her parents, leaning over to peck Ernst on the cheek. He jumps at the contact, but then leans over and returns the gesture with a kiss to the lips, trying to sell the lie he’s supposed to be telling. He feels awkward against the warm softness of Wendla’s lips, even if it’s only a moment; he’s used to the rough coolness of Hanschen’s lips, not feeling warmth until their tongues touch.

Hanschen’s hand slams down on the table when his boyfriend’s lips touch Wendla’s, seething in jealousy. He looks like he’s about to say something, but he’s interrupted by Wendla’s dad clearing his throat at the kiss, and then asking the next question. “Is art education a hard major, Ernst? Your brother certainly makes it sound like the work must fly through for you.”

Ernst blushes at the compliment, not knowing what to say for reasons other than pretending to be straight. “It can, uh, really be hard at times! I can do art most of the time, but the other classes are hard for me.”

Hanschen interrupts. “Ernst doesn’t mind hard though. He likes it rough. It’s more rewarding for him when he’s finished.”

“Yeah, he obviously really likes a challenge, Hanschen,” Wendla says, hoping his innuendo went over her parents’ heads.

“Clearly. But I guess that makes it a good thing he has you, Wendla.” 

“And an even better thing he has you!” Ilse fires at him, not letting anyone talk to her girlfriend like that. “I’m done with your shi– you today. Go home.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” Hanschen growls, pushing his chair out and standing up. He storms through the tables and out of the restaurant door, letting it swing shut behind him and walking out of sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this update has taken so long! I won't bore you with the details but it's been one hell of a busy month. But it's here now! I hope you liked it! Comment and like and all that jazz, it makes me write faster! And in the meantime, I can be found on tumblr at dwsatrash :) Thanks so much for reading, it means the world! <3
> 
> P.S. If you have anything you want to see in this fic, let me know! I'm totally open to suggestions! :)

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked this! I'll update as often as I can, but I'm a terribly slow writer, so sorry if it takes some time. Chapters will also get longer after this, this was just kind of introductory. Comments are greatly appreciated!! Oh, and if Wendla's parents have names in canon, please let me know! I just made up my own for the time being, but I'd love to be more accurate if I can! 
> 
> I can be found on tumblr at emfelicity :)


End file.
